''Untitled'' is a painting created by American artist

Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat (; December 22, 1960 – August 12, 1988) was an American artist who rose to success during the 1980s as part of the Neo-expressionism movement. Basquiat first achieved fame as part of the graffiti duo SAMO, alongside Al ...

in 1981. An X-ray-like vision of the head's exposed upper and lower jaw accounts for its misinterpretation as a skull. The painting was acquired by

Eli Eli most commonly refers to: * Eli (name), a given name, nickname and surname * Eli (biblical figure) Eli or ELI may also refer to: Film * ''Eli'' (2015 film), a Tamil film * ''Eli'' (2019 film), an American horror film Music * ''Eli'' (Jan ...

and

Edythe Broad Edythe Broad ( /broʊd/; born Edythe Lawson in 1936) is an American art collector and philanthropist. With her husband Eli, she has collected "about 2000 pieces of art valued at more than $2 billion" and supported arts initiatives such as the Los ...

in 1982, and is now housed at

The Broad The Broad () is a contemporary art museum on Grand Avenue in Downtown Los Angeles. The museum is named for philanthropists Eli and Edythe Broad, who financed the $140 million building that houses the Broad art collections. It offers free general ...

museum in Los Angeles.

History

Basquiat began working on ''Untitled'' in early 1981. Unlike most of his pieces which were completed exuberantly within a few days, ''Untitled'' remained unfinished for several months as Basquiat stalled its completion. Art historian Fred Hoffman's description alludes to a vision Basquiat may have conjured in the studio: "One can only speculate about the reasons for this hesitation, but several individuals close to the artist—including myself and

Annina Nosei Annina Nosei (born 1939) is an Italian-born art dealer and gallerist. Nosei is best known for being Jean-Michel Basquiat’s first art dealer and providing him with studio space in the basement of her gallery. From 1981 to 2006, the Annina Nosei Gal ...

, the artist’s dealer at the time—suspect that this young, unseasoned artist hesitated to complete the work because he was caught off guard, possibly even frightened, by the power and energy emanating from this unexpected image." ''Untitled'' depicts both inside and outside dimensions of a head, existing between life and death. The eyes are listless as if the head was

lobotomized A lobotomy, or leucotomy, is a form of neurosurgical treatment for psychiatric disorder or neurological disorder (e.g. epilepsy) that involves severing connections in the brain's prefrontal cortex. The surgery causes most of the connections t ...

. The subdued facial expression is a contrast to the vibrant colors that suggest an abundance of internal activity. Basquiat's use of heads and skulls are deeply rooted in his identity as a

Black American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

and are evocative of African masks. "He developed a unique style, which combined expressive and at times violent brushstrokes with words, symbols, and a variety of materials, to confront social issues." The painting was presented as ''Untitled'' at Basquiat's debut American solo exhibition at the Annina Nosei Gallery in 1982. When it was purchased some months later, the word "Skull" was added to the title and has accompanied the painting ever since, through numerous exhibitions. Hoffman suggests the change in title was "the result of confusing the work with the more traditional iconography of the

memento mori ''Memento mori'' (Latin for 'remember that you ave todie'